- Omen

"This is the barrier?" Zex asked as he touched the almost invisible barrier with his hand.

"They seem to have reinforced it but yes it is. Can you destroy it?"

The fortress was in shambles but it seemed like the entrance towards the underground dungeons was cleared fairly recently.

As Zex was inspecting the barrier, he kept having a feeling that was familiar but not entirely, like there was something special mixed in with the mana reinforcing it.

"Stand back!" Zex warned as he drew Avegar from his spatial storage.

He swung downward at the barrier which resulted in a blinding light being emitted for a few seconds.

However, the barrier remained as it was.

"What?" Edge was surprised. He knew about Avegar's mana-absorbing property. No barrier could withstand a single slash, including those of Arissef's. They even tested it before.

Zex wore a serious expression as he was doubting what he saw earlier.

While the light blinded Edge for a while, Zex was able to bypass it with his [Evil Gaze]... and when he did so, there was a type of watery substance immediately washing over the barrier like a ripple. Moreover, the watery substance was...

BLACK.

"Stand back for real this time." Zex warned once again and urged Edge to move back more.

This time, Zex poured black flames into Avegar which gave off a menacing aura. As if sensing this aura, the barrier's color turned black as its texture turned into that of a liquid.

'Black water... and it is reacting to my black flames.' Zex thought that this rescue mission was going to be uneventful. Now, all his senses were telling him to put up his guard.

Taking a deep breath, Zex took a step forward and swung the black flames infused Avegar downward once again. This time, however, he was constantly pumping his black flames into the great sword. At the moment of impact, the black water barrier violently shook as the black water surged towards the area Zex was trying to destroy. Black vapor and steam clouded the area as the two types of mana interacted with each other.

As the black water began to thin down, the barrier started to crack. Zex poured in another burst of black flames which created an explosion as the barrier shattered.

Zex was panting after consuming more black flames than he expected. While he was trying to steady his body, his eye caught the glimpse of Edge quickly approaching the dungeon gate.

"Wait!" Zex tried to stop him but he was too late. Edge already cut through the gate with his new [Death Aura], clearly copying the principles of his [Black Flame Armor] but manifesting a formless cloak, instead.

"Follow me, when you have recovered." Edge quickly glanced at the recuperating Zex before entering the dungeon alone.

'Damn it! I get that he is anxious but...' Zex cursed in his mind as he sat down cross-legged and tried to replenish his black flames.

The usage of his black flames were already difficult to control, to begin with, thanks to the incompatibility with his body. This made it easy for his black flames to dissipate from time to time. When it came into contact with the black water, a violent reaction occurred just like how water naturally quenches fire. He had to pour in more to overcome the clear disadvantage. This drained most of his reserves in one go.

'With such an interaction, does this mean that the black flames are also elemental mana?' Zex was disturbed by the notion that there was another type of mana similar to his black flames. This is after his master explained that it was a peculiar type of mana he never even heard of.

'Are there others like me?' A thought suddenly popped up in his mind regarding the possibility that there were others who were sent here from Earth.

Brimming with excitement and curiosity, he focused on speeding up his recovery.

...

In the lowest room of the dungeon...

"How is this possible? You said nobody could break the barrier!" The gray-haired man clenched his teeth in anger.

The man in mage robes looked somewhat disturbed. "My master told me so. I couldn't even break it myself!" When the barrier was first attacked, he managed to see who was attacking via a hidden mirror he placed on one of the broken pillars.

The grey-haired man glared at him. "Bah! At least he's here. Kill the other guy first and bring Drago to me.

"Yes." The mage answered as he conjured a portal and entered it.

...

*Click* *Fizz* *Plop*

"Amateurs." Edge was navigating through the first floor of the dungeon, disarming trap after trap with his [Death Aura]. However, he had to admit that these traps managed to slow him down. While most of these traps do not pose a threat against him, it was another story for Zex or Dhana. Leaving them operational might cause unwanted accidents in the near future.

On each floor of the dungeon, there were cells on each side of the hall, having a large room at the end where a spiral staircase is located at the center leading to the lower floor. The cells still had signs of being used as the quarters for the soldiers in the previous wars while the large room held signs of burnt food supply. As the dungeons were designed to hold numerous captives, the cells were just as numerous, and the staircases were situated at alternate ends on each floor to avoid easy escape for the prisoners. Each room with a staircase strangely had a few mirrors that were set up on the walls.

On the first staircase, three thugs were preparing to ambush the intruder. The sounds of the traps being disarmed echoed throughout the hall and assaulted their senses. These sounds symbolized the uselessness of the supposed-to-be 'elaborate' traps that they had set up weeks ago.

They were sweating as they tried to slow down their breathing to not give their target any sign of their presence.

Of course, to Edge, their presence was pitifully apparent to him ever since the beginning. He was not going to give his daughter's captives an easy death.

A few moments later, deathly screams echoed throughout the dungeon, signifying the first contact with the intruder.

Just as Edge arrived at the next floor, he was greeted by a magic bullet to which he barely dodged. The force of the bullet even dissipated the [Death Aura] it passed through.

"You haven't learned a lesson since last time, huh?" The mage said as he fired more bullets to which Edge was doing his best to dodge.

Edge grimaced as he threw darts of [Death Aura] towards the mage. "I have nothing to say to an Entolo scum like you."

The mage's face suddenly turned sour after hearing those words as he conjured portals to where the [Death Aura] darts were heading.

"Who are... WAIT! But you are dead! I confirmed it with the head keeper!" The mage was getting frustrated as realization dawned on him.

Edge simply stood there, cloaked with death energy as he replied: "I did die. You will experience it soon." He suddenly shot forward and closed the distance between him and the mage.

Just as he was about to slice the mage's throat with his dagger made up of [Death Aura], the mage smiled as a portal suddenly appeared between them.

"Stay there in oblivion." The mage chuckled as he turned around and conjured another portal.

He was bout to leave when a dimensional crack appeared behind him. Reality shattered as Edge reappeared behind him already starting to swing his dagger at the mage.

The mage was able to leap forward and dodge the attack just in time. "How did you escape?" He was truly surprised. None has ever escaped the dimension he created.

"Technically, he didn't" Zex stepped out of the shadows with a serious face. "I just messed up your dimensional magic a bit."

"I-I don't understand! You can't do magic!" The mage was sweating bullets as fear gripped his soul. All the intelligence he gathered for weeks was being turned upside down that it felt like he was having a nightmare. He tried to conjure a portal behind him but before it could even take form, the mana flow was being interrupted. "WHY???? THIS DOES NOT MAKE ANY SENSE!!!"

"Shut up!" Edge shouted as he threw darts at the mage's legs, piercing them and corroding his flesh.

The mage screamed as he tried to cast magic bullets towards Edge but with his mana turning haywire together with the loss of concentration affecting his aim and control, they were easily dodged. The pain in his body rose further as the death energy crept towards his heart.

"Don't kill him!" Zex shouted.

Edge was unfazed at Zex's words as he controlled the death energy to spread even further.

"At least let me learn his skills first. His portal spells will speed things up for us." Zex tried to reason with Edge. Fortunately, Edge decided to listen and dispersed the death energy from the mage's body. However, the damage was already too great and the mage's mana was in a mess. There was no chance of him using any spells for days.

Zex nodded in gratitude as he approached the mage and infused him with a huge amount of black flames, beginning the skill learning process.

"What is your name?" Zex asked the man who was sweating non-stop and shivering from the fear of death. However, the man did not respond glaring at Zex with all his might.

"His name is Croa Entolo. Barazi's brother. They both studied in a prestigious magister academy in the Eishel Kingdom. I only learned of his return after he kidnapped Dhana." Edge paused before he continued. "At first, I thought they were trying to have revenge on me, somehow knowing about my survival. However, with what he said earlier... it would seem their target was you... or should I say, Drago."

"Makes sense." Zex said as he then proceeded to ask with a more intimidating tone: "Where did you get the black water from?"

Zex used [Evil Gaze] and inflicted a feared status on Croa.

"M-my master gave it to me... She---she said it will increase the potency of magic." Croa said as his face turned pale and tears were falling from his eyes.

"What is your master's name and where can I find her?" Zex continued with his interrogation. The excitement and curiosity he was feeling were beginning to reach their peak.

"Her na---name is Hagel Asterr... She is the headmaster of the Grand Magisterium in---in---in the Eishel Kingdom." Croa explained with all his might while he was being suffocated by the pressure Zex was emitting.

Zex stood up as he was satisfied after asking a few more questions. Croa's mouth was already foaming and his eyes rolled back after fainting by the end of it.

"Please don't tell me you are keeping him alive." Edge said as he glared at Zex.

Zex waved his hand in response. "I have a feeling he will be useful to me in the future."

"Tsk. Suit yourself." Edge clicked his tongue, not bothering to discuss it any further. "Can you teleport us there or not?"

"Give me a minute." Zex entered his Mind Space and studied the portal spell. Seconds later, he conjured a portal and threw Croa's body after placing an anti-magic seal on him.

As the portal closed, Zex turned to look at the anxious Edge. "Ready?"

"Just take us there." Edge said as he looked away.

Zex knew what he was thinking. It has been days since Dhana was kidnapped. With what happened to Amber... It would be too cruel to experience the same thing again.

"Let's go save Dhana." Zex firmly said as he opened up a portal.

"Yes."